Police say Johnson is believed to be armed with a .380-caliber semiautomatic pistol, the same pistol with which they say he shot Salisbury in the parking lot at the Be-Lo food store at 2201 Kecoughtan Road about 2:15 p.m.

Police were still looking for Johnson Tuesday night. They did not have his address.

Detective Lt. Tom Townsend said the shooting followed an argument between Johnson and Salisbury over a woman employed at Be-Lo. Dellie Suiter, co-manager of the Be-Lo, said Salisbury had been a stock clerk at the store until about a month ago.

During the argument, Johnson got a handgun from his car and shot Salisbury three times, Townsend said. Two of the bullets struck Salisbury in the left arm. The third bullet tore a hole in the left side of Salisbury's chest, Townsend said.

``It sounded like an automatic, one right behind the other,'' Suiter said.

He said that when he stepped outside he heard several people screaming that a man had been shot. He said he recognized Salisbury, who struggled to walk to the front of the store.

``You could tell the man had been shot,'' Suiter said. ``There was blood on the left side of his chest and his left arm.''

Suiter said Salisbury collapsed near the front of the store, then got up and, in an angry voice, said he would retaliate.

Salisbury was taken to Sentara Hampton General Hospital, where he was admitted in satisfactory condition.